The compound cyclosporine (cyclosporin A) has found wide use since its introduction in the fields of organ transplantation and immunomodulation, and has brought about a significant increase in the success rate for transplantation procedures. Recently, several classes of macrocyclic compounds having potent immunomodulatory activity have been discovered. Okuhara et al., in European Patent Application No. 184,162, published Jun. 11, 1986, disclose a number of macrocyclic compounds isolated from the genus Streptomyces, including the immunosuppressant FK-506, a 23-membered macrocyclic lactone, which was isolated from a strain of S. tsukubaensis. 
Other related natural products, such as FR-900520 and FR-900523, which differ from FK-506 in their alkyl substituent at C-21, have been isolated from S. hygroscopicus yakushimnaensis. Another analog, FR-900525, produced by S. tsukubaensis, differs from FK-506 in the replacement of a pipecolic acid moiety with a proline group. Unsatisfactory side-effects associated with cyclosporine and FK-506 such as nephrotoxicity, have led to a continued search for immunosuppressant compounds having improved efficacy and safety, including an immunosupressive agent which is effective topically, but ineffective systemically (U.S. Pat. No. 5,457,111).
Rapamycin is a macrocyclic triene antibiotic produced by Streptomyces hygroscopicus, which was found to have antifungal activity, particularly against Candida albicans, both in vitro and in vivo (C. Vezina et al., J. Antibiot. 1975, 28, 721; S. N. Sehgal et al., J. Antibiot. 1975, 28, 727; H. A. Baker et al., J. Antibiot. 1978, 31, 539; U.S. Pat. No. 3,929,992; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,993,749). 
Rapamycin alone (U.S. Pat. No. 4,885,171) or in combination with picibanil (U.S. Pat. No. 4,401,653) has been shown to have antitumor activity. In 1977, rapamycin was-also shown to be effective as an immunosuppressant in the experimental allergic encephalomyelitis model, a model for multiple sclerosis; in the adjuvant arthritis model, a model for rheumatoid arthritis; and was shown to effectively inhibit the formation of IgE-like antibodies (R. Martel et al., Can. J. Physiol. Pharmacol., 1977, 55, 48).
The immunosuppressive effects of rapamycin have also been disclosed in FASEB, 1989, 3, 3411 as has its ability to prolong survival time of organ grafts in histoincompatible rodents (R. Morris, Med. Sci. Res., 1989, 17, 877). The ability of rapamycin to inhibit T-cell activation was disclosed by M. Strauch (FASEB, 1989, 3, 3411). These and other biological effects of rapamycin are reviewed in Transplantation Reviews, 1992, 6, 39-87.
Rapamycin has been shown to reduce neointimal proliferation in animal models, and to reduce the rate of restenosis in humans. Evidence has been published showing that rapamycin also exhibits an anti-inflammatory effect, a characteristic which supported its selection as an agent for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Because both cell proliferation and inflammation are thought to be causative factors in the formation of restenotic lesions after balloon angioplasty and stent placement, rapamycin and analogs thereof have been proposed for the prevention of restenosis.
Mono-ester and di-ester derivatives of rapamycin (esterification at positions 31 and 42) have been shown to be useful as antifungal agents (U.S. Pat. No. 4,316,885) and as water soluble prodrugs of rapamycin (U.S. Pat. No. 4,650,803).
Fermentation and purification of rapamycin and 30-demethoxy rapamycin have been described in the literature (C. Vezina et al. J. Antibiot. (Tokyo), 1975, 28 (10), 721; S. N. Sehgal et al., J. Antibiot. (Tokyo), 1975, 28(10), 727; 1983, 36(4), 351; N. L. Pavia et al., J. Natural Products, 1991, 54(1), 167-177).
Numerous chemical modifications of rapamycin have been attempted. These include the preparation of mono- and di-ester derivatives of rapamycin (WO 92/05179), 27-oximes of rapamycin (EP0 467606); 42-oxo analog of rapamycin (U.S. Pat. No. 5,023,262); bicyclic rapamycins (U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,725); rapamycin dimers (U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,727); silyl ethers of rapamycin (U.S. Pat. No. 5,120,842); and arylsulfonates and sulfamates (U.S. Pat. No. 5,177,203). Rapamycin was recently synthesized in its naturally occuring enantiomeric form (K. C. Nicolaou et al., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1993, 115, 4419-4420; S. L. Schreiber, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1993, 115, 7906-7907; S. J. Danishefsky, J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1993, 115, 9345-9346.
It has been known that rapamycin, like FK-506, binds to FKBP-12 (Siekierka, J. J.; Hung, S. H. Y.; Poe, M.; Lin, C. S.; Sigal, N. H. Nature, 1989, 341, 755-757; Harding, M. W.; Galat, A.; Uehling, D. E.; Schreiber, S. L. Nature 1989, 341, 758-760; Dumont, F. J.; Melino, M. R.; Staruch, M. J.; Koprak, S. L.; Fischer, P. A.; Sigal, N. H. J. Immunol. 1990, 144, 1418-1424; Bierer, B. E.; Schreiber, S. L.; Burakoff, S. J: Eur. J. Immunol. 1991, 21, 439-445; Fretz, H.; Albers, M. W.; Galat, A.; Standaert, R. F.; Lane, W. S.; Burakoff, S. J.; Bierer, B. E.; Schreiber, S. L. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1991, 113, 1409-1411). Recently it has been discovered that the rapamycin/FKBP-12 complex binds to yet another protein, which is distinct from calcineurin, the protein that the FK-506/FKBP-12 complex inhibits (Brown, E. J.; Albers, M. W.; Shin, T. B.; Ichikawa, K.; Keith, C. T.; Lane, W. S.; Schreiber, S. L. Nature 1994, 369, 756-758; Sabatini, D. M.; Erdjument-Bromage, H.; Lui, M.; Tempest, P.; Snyder, S. H. Cell, 1994, 78, 35-43).
Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) was developed by Andreas Gruntzig in the 1970's. The first canine coronary dilation was performed on Sep. 24, 1975; studies showing the use of PTCA were presented at the annual meetings of the American Heart Association the following year. Shortly thereafter, the first human patient was studied in Zurich, Switzerland, followed by the first American human patients in San Francisco and New York. While this procedure changed the practice of interventional cardiology with respect to treatment of patients with obstructive coronary artery disease, the procedure did not provide long-term solutions. Patients received only temporary abatement of the chest pain associated with vascular occlusion; repeat procedures were often necessary. It was determined that the existence of restenotic lesions severely limited the usefulness of the new procedure. In the late 1980's, stents were introduced to maintain vessel patency after angioplasty. Stenting is involved in 90% of angioplasty performed today. Before the introduction of stents, the rate of restenosis ranged from 30% to 50% of the patients who were treated with balloon angioplasty. The recurrence rate after dilatation of in-stent restenosis may be as high as 70% in selected patient subsets, while the angiographic restenosis rate in de novo stent placement is about 20%. Placement of the stent reduced the restenosis rate to 15% to 20%. This percentage likely represents the best results obtainable with purely mechanical stenting. The restenosis lesion is caused primarily by neointimal hyperplasia, which is distinctly different from atherosclerotic disease both in time-course and in histopathologic appearance. Restenosis is a healing process of damaged coronary arterial walls, with neointimal tissue impinging significantly on the vessel lumen. Vascular brachytherapy appears to be efficacious against in-stent restenosis lesions. Radiation, however, has limitations of practicality and expense, and lingering questions about safety and durability.
Accordingly, it is desired to reduce the rate of restenosis by at least 50% of its current level. It is for this reason that a major effort is underway by the interventional device community to fabricate and evaluate drug-eluting stents. Such devices could have many advantages if they were successful, principally since such systems would need no auxiliary therapies, either in the form of peri-procedural techniques or chronic oral pharmacotherapy.